


I promise we'll meet again, dear friend

by Fallenangel_Winchester



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adorable Loki (Marvel), Adorable Tony Stark, Alternate Universe, Best Friends, Childhood Friends, Fae & Fairies, Fae Loki, Fluff, Frosting, Gen, Heartwarming, How Do I Tag, Kid Tony Stark, Snow
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-09
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:41:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,157
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23565457
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fallenangel_Winchester/pseuds/Fallenangel_Winchester
Summary: Tony was always fascinated by the frost patterns on the windows, he never imagined that they could bring him a new friend
Relationships: Loki & Tony Stark
Comments: 4
Kudos: 78





	I promise we'll meet again, dear friend

**Author's Note:**

> Something that wouldn't leave my mind for quite some time, granted the idea is way better than the execution, my pacing is messy at best and this story is the longest one-shot I have written in a long while, so it kinda went on its own way. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and I hope at least someone will enjoy this.

There was something fascinating about frost patterns, something that kept Tony's attention from the moment his gaze fell on the window. It looked as if someone took a paintbrush and practiced painting on the window. The small window in the back door of the kitchen, the warmest and coziest room in the whole mansion. 

Fascinated by the beautiful sight, he traced the patterns with his finger, whenever he felt lonely. One day after he had said goodbye to his parents who were going away for a few days he sat in front of the small window and tried to look through the slowly fading frost patterns. 

“Jarvis?”

“Yes ?”“

“Do you know what makes these ?” and he pointed at the window in case Jarvis didn't know what he was talking about.

“I suppose they are created by the cold air, or what my aunt used to say that they were painted by the winter fairies.” 

That caught Tony's attention and he turned to fully face Jarvis who didn't stop what he was doing to explain himself. When he couldn't take the silence anymore, he asked,

“And ?” 

“And what ?”

“Come on Jarvis!" he whined as dramatically as a seven year old could.

”You can't just say something like that and not explain. Tell me the story.“

”You didn't say the magic word.“ he joked, but Tony knew by the soft smile on his face that he was going to tell him everything he knew. So he went to sit across the other man and patiently waited for the story and for what seemed to be a cup of hot cocoa.

As always he didn't disappoint, in no time Tony was warming his hands on the cup while Jarvis was talking.

"First you're going to promise me that you won't interrupt me, at least not while I'm talking. Is that alright ?" he got a nod as an answer.

"My aunt used to tell me all kinds of stories especially during the winter time. Her favorites were the ones where there was a lesson to be learned even if they didn't have a happy ending, she enjoyed scaring me as well, talking about wicked creatures, the cruelty and selfishness of the snow queen and similar things. I always thought that she invented the stories as she was telling them, in the moment but it wasn't quite like that. I don't remember all of them, but one that stuck with me was the one about the winter fairies." the smile on his face was as warm as the cocoa, his mind far away before he pointed his gaze at him.

"The winter fairies are part of the fairy court and the only type of fairies who only go out during the winter. They hide amidst the snow, play around the trees, sit next to the forest animals, sometimes they cause mischief along the way, they even tease every cat and dog they come across...but their specialty is the frost patterns on the windows." 

"With a single touch they can paint the most beautiful picture you have ever seen, that's their way of announcing their presence, but rarely anyone except for the children noticed them." 

"Did your aunt tell you what they looked like?" his question brought a chuckle out of him.

"Blue, she always said that they were blue, which made no sense to me, I always imagined them to be as white as the snow, so they can better blend in."

"She said the young ones were the ones who did the drawing. That's why the patterns make no sense, because they did that to cheer up the human children, to watch their faces glow with surprise and wonder. They wanted their talents to be appreciated, but I think that they were curious and wanted to make new friends."

"Is there a story for a fairy who became a friend with a human ?"

"Hmmm, I'm not sure, but there is one about a fairy that got lost." and with that he started talking effectively capturing Tony's attention. 

For days afterwards Tony couldn't get the stories out of his head, whenever he would notice a frost pattern on the windows, he'd start thinking about the winter fairies. If that's the way they communicated with humans, he wondered if there was a way for him to let them know that he had gotten the message and that he knew about them.

He had doubts of course, sometimes he thought that he was too old for stories and that they couldn't be real, yet his heart refused to believe his mind. 

So he decided, he was going to find a way to talk with a fairy and to prove whether there was a truth in those stories. 

The question was how to do that. Should he try to smudge the frost pattern, to try and create a pattern by himself or to wait until the next pattern appeared so he could catch the fairy in the act.

It was quite difficult to choose, since according to Jarvis they could turn invisible and Tony knew that he wouldn't be able to see them if they stayed hidden. For a second he contemplated coming up with some sort of a warning system, a bell that would tell him that someone was at the window but once again he didn't have enough information to come up with a decent plan. 

So, he started small, the way Jarvis taught him, when in doubt take a small and careful step and wait to see what happens. He even offered to help Tony with some of the ideas, especially the one which included baking cookies in an attempt to lure any fairy in. When his aunt Peggy found out she joked that she didn't believe that the fairies knew what cookies were and that he wasn't luring Santa. Tony pouted so much when he heard that, but the promise of having aunt Peggy on his side or at least being supportive was enough to give him a boost of confidence.

He decided to leave the cookies for a later stage in his plan, the first step was to try and erase the frost pattern.

It seemed that they couldn't get erased from the inside so he did that front the outside. 

As expected the next day the pattern was back on the window, but this time it was bigger and more beautiful than the first time, this time it covered the whole window. Tony was delighted, but he still had no proof since there was nothing to indicate that a fairy did that. 

Believing that the fairy must be doing its magic during the night, Tony once again stayed outside for ten minutes, shivering, but refusing to get in before he could erase the pattern. Then he sat in front of the window covered with a thick blanket, drank hot cocoa and waited for the fairy to show up. 

He saw nothing, but snow and the fact that it was heavily snowing didn't help him at all. The last thing he remembered before he drifted off to sleep was snowflakes hitting the window and the wind howling outside the mansion.

There was no new pattern the next day, or the day after, in fact there were no patterns for the next few days, Tony checked all of the windows in the house and the result was the same. 

”Do you think the winter fairy is angry at me Jarvis ?“

”What made you think that young sir ?“ 

”There's nothing on the windows, the first time the picture came back, but this time it didn't.“ 

”I thought you forgot about your plan by now.“ 

”Of course not, I'm just taking small steps the way you taught me.“

”Ohh, I see. You must be bored now that you are not going to school for the next three weeks.“

”Nope, I'm not bored, I have...a problem...no it's a mystery that I need to solve.“ he announced, his gaze never leaving the window. 

It had stopped snowing. 

”How about while you're in between solving the mystery, you give me a hand with the lunch, tonight you have guests remember ? “

”Aunt Peggy is coming over! And uncle Nick too! “ 

Jarvis chuckled at his enthusiasm, but he was genuinely happy that two of his favorite people would come over. 

”You never stopped calling him uncle did you ? You know it annoys him.“

”Not true, aunt Peggy told me he only pretends to be grumpy, it's part of his look.“ then he started laughing at the way Jarvis was trying to hold back his own laughter. 

Two days later Tony was sitting in front of the small window, lost in thoughts once again, his nose almost stuck to the glass when he noticed the way his warm breath fogged the glass and just like that he got an idea. He used his breath to fog a part of the window and then he quickly wrote 'Hi'. After a short look at the slowly fading letters, he repeated the process, but this time he wrote 'I'm Tony." 

Overjoyed at the fact that he had found a way to communicate even though he felt a bit silly for not coming up with the idea before, he got lost in the act that Jarvis had to call his name to get his attention. Satisfied with his work, he continued with the rest of his evening, resisting the urge to rush back to the kitchen to check up on the window, instead he decided to wait until the morning. 

The next morning when he rushed to see whether something had changed, almost startling Jarvis in the process, he took a long and good look at the glass before he jumped in joy.

”Jarvis! Look Jarvis! It's back, the drawing is back! It means that the fairy is back.“ in true Jarvis' fashion he went to stand next to Tony and to see it for himself. 

”Would you look at that young sir, that's quite lovely don't you think ? It looks like someone had drawn you a forest.“

”That's a message Jarvis, from the winter fairy, maybe it wants to be my friend as well.“ 

”I can't imagine anyone not wanting to be your friend Anthony.“

”Can we bake cookies for my new friend ?“ 

”Once you actually eat, do your homework, you've been falling behind on your studies, your father isn't the only one who has noticed.“

”Ahhh Jarvis...you're no fun.'' As always he complained for a bit before he did what he was supposed to do, most of the time he enjoyed learning new things so he was quite occupied for the rest of the day and most of the evening. Yet he still managed to write a message to his new friend, this time mindful not to ruin the beautiful picture, he simply wrote 'Will you come to play with me?'

The following days he wrote messages, every day there was a new frost picture on the window and sometimes on the other windows as well, but still there were no signs of a fairy. Tony wasn't the slightest bit discouraged, it was like every time he had been dealt with a new puzzle to solve, it took time and he kept reminding himself to be patient. Of course his patience lasted for three days which was outstanding for a someone as curious as he. 

It was a quiet day, the snow had stopped falling, there wasn't any wind and it felt as if the time had slowed down when the wind chime that Tony made cheerfully announced its presence. 

At the same time, the window's glass started fogging as a pattern was slowly coming to life.

It was the sign Tony was waiting for, so he carefully pressed himself on the wall next to the window in an attempt to watch, but not to be seen from the outside and waited. 

Fine white lines started to form, twisting, moving seamlessly and steadily as a painter's brush, Tony stared in wonder and the moment the picture got completed he rushed to face the window and maybe steal a glance at the artist.

It seemed that the artist didn't expect to get caught in the act because Tony saw a pair of startled red eyes and blue skin and before he could make out the fairy's features, it quickly ran away. Tony quickly opened the door and rushed outside, but it was too late. There was no trace of anyone being outside, the wind chime didn't even sway at his movements and he found himself standing in the cold still shocked by what he had seen.

”I just want to be your friend!“ he yelled at no one, his gaze moved from one snow covered bush to the next, passed over the trees, but he saw nothing unusual.

”Who are you talking to, young sir ? Please come inside, it's too cold to stand outside without a coat.“ Jarvis's voice broke through his haze and he quickly walked inside.

”No one, but I think your aunt was right.“

”About what ?“

”About the color.“ was all he said before he rushed to his room much to the other man's confusion. 

He spent the rest of the drawing everything he remembered seeing and coming up with a new plan. 

The plan was to offer the fairy a few cookies, making friends was much easier when there was something to offer as a greeting. Jarvis listened to his plan with a serious expression on his face and agreed to help him but only if Tony would listen to his advice and do what he should to keep himself safe. Tony agreed and the next day he carried freshly baked cookies on a plate and was walking around the backyard talking to the fairy which was in fact talking to himself. Nothing happened even after an hour so Tony put the plate on a small stool outside the backdoor and went inside. 

Maybe the fairy was shy and afraid of humans.

For the next two weeks there was no change in his routine, he would invite the fairy to play, the fairy would paint a picture on the small window, one or two cookies would be missing from the plate, but that was it. So he let it rest and focused on building some of the things he wanted which were mostly improved toys and built it yourself models his father bought for him. Until after a week of no snow, the snow returned with a vengeance and Tony got lost on his way back from school. He knew he should have asked Jarvis to pick him up, but he claimed that he was a big boy like the rest and that meant that he wanted to return at home on foot. 

It wasn't as if he had lost his way, it was the blizzard that was slowly increasing in speed and intensity, the snowflakes clouding his vision and before he realized the road had taken him towards the local forest.

The moment he took in his surroundings he started panicking, he didn't know the way out, he didn't know how far he had walked into the forest as thoughts of scary wolves coming out from behind the trees slowly took over. He wanted to fall on the ground, curl into a ball and wait for someone to find him, but his legs refused to slow down, his panic taking over until he was so far into the forest he couldn't orient himself. From the corner of his eyes he could detect movement that might have been a trick of light, while doing nothing to ease his fear. The wind was whistling around him so loudly that he wasn't able to hear anything else, so when someone grabbed his arm, he jumped in surprise. 

In the middle of the blizzard stood the fairy he tried to contact all those days, it looked like a boy only blue. He was blue with red eyes and a jet-black hair dressed in weird clothes but he was so shocked by the appearance of him that he didn't even react when he got pulled along by his sleeve. 

Somehow he trusted the fairy to guide him back to safety and the fact that the wind wasn't as violent when he was around confirmed that theory. They arrived at Tony's house pretty quickly and once he saw the backdoor of the kitchen he let out a relieved sigh. 

The fairy-boy halted far from the door and stayed there, refusing to move further. When Tony realized that the boy wasn't following him he said,

”Come on in, Jarvis will make us hot cocoa.“ the boy shook his head and took a step back.

”You don't want to come in ?“ somehow that sounded like a rejection from a new friend, it made Tony sad, but when the boy replied,

”I can't.“ he realized that he was talking to a winter fairy, he must not feel comfortable around fire.

”Thanks for helping me and bringing me back home. I'm Tony.“ 

"I know.” his voice got carried by the wind, unbelievably easy to understand even through the howling of the wind.

“Will you come again ? To play ? ”

“I don't know.”

“That's alright, you can come to draw on the windows whenever you want. I'll make us some cookies.” he got a wide smile in return before the boy started walking away. 

Suddenly Tony remembered and yelled at the wind,

“What's your name ?”

“Loki” and just like that he disappeared in the blizzard.

That's how it all started. From that day on Loki came to visit Tony a few times a week, each time his arrival got announced by a beautiful pattern on the window. Pretty soon they realized that they weren't so different after all, in fact they made quite a good duo. 

“Wow. Your skin is actually blue, so cool.”

“You think so ?”

“Yeah, and you have lines like tattoos. Ohh, can you do magic ? Control the wind or something similar ?”

“You don't know much about the fairy realm do you ?” but he didn't sound like he was mocking him, he sounded genuinely curious.

“I know a few stories.”

That's how they spent most of their time together, they talked about everything, Tony showed Loki some of his inventions, Loki showed him some tricks and they played outside since Loki couldn't stay in warm places.

  
  


“I don't like humans.”

“No one ?”

“Well...you're not bad for a human.” but Tony learned that that was a compliment coming from Loki.“

  
  


”I'm not like the rest of the fairies, I'm mixed, half a winter fairy and the other half like the other fairies.“

”Are they blue like you ?“

”Who ?

“The other fairies, not the winter fairies.”

“No, they are quite fair, some of them like the snow. I should be able to change my looks to turn the blue skin white but I can't...not yet”

“If you're asking me, I like the blue, and your eyes are like gems. Ohh can you see in the dark ?”

“I haven't met anyone as curious as you Tony. It's like you have a fairy blood in you as well.” but he always answered the questions as best as he could.

“We've been having a good fun dear friend, but it's time to leave. The winter is at its end, it's time for my kind to step back until the next winter.”

“Do you have to go ?”

“Yes, it's not optional I'm afraid.”

“Promise me that you'll come back next winter. I'll work hard on our ideas and make all those awesome toys and inventions.”

“I promise. Pay attention to your windows Tony and stay out of trouble. Until next time.” that was the day before the snow melted. 

The next year Tony was so lost in his homework and his projects that by the time the winter started he was almost under the impression that he had imagined his new friend. Jarvis wasn't helpful at all, since he never met Loki, but he was more than content to tell him as many stories as he remembered. Then the morning after the first snow had fallen Tony was greeted by frost flowers on the window's glass and just like that his mood improved.

“Loki. Jarvis, Loki is back. I'm going out.” and he grabbed his coat, hat and gloves and rushed outside without getting permission.

He missed his friend a lot and at the same time he wanted to reassure himself that Loki was real. 

“Loki! You can come out now! It's Tony!” he yelled when he was far enough from the house. 

A few moments passed in silence and nothing happened, so he waited. Just as he was starting to get worried, he noticed a movement with the corner of his left eye, it was followed by a cold breeze and when he turned around Loki was standing in front of him, looking exactly the way he remembered him.

“Hi Tony.” his eyes shone in greeting as his lips pulled into a small smile.

Tony stepped forward with the intention to give his friend a welcome hug, but stopped himself on time when he reminded himself that Loki didn't like touching humans.

“Welcome back Loki, can't wait to tell you everything that happened while you were gone.”

“Can't wait to hear. ”

Once again they spent most of the time together, their conversations shifting from silly topics to serious ones, somehow discovering that their struggles weren't that different, which brought them even closer. If someone would have asked Tony, he would have said that Loki was his best friend and that would be the truth. 

They kept communicating through messages on the window whenever Tony couldn't go outside, yet he always remembered to leave something sweet for Loki to eat. 

Sometimes Loki drew a lovely picture on the glass, but he wouldn't appear, he would only look through the window with an unreadable emotion on his face, his curious eyes shining in the dark.

Tony was upset, angry, disappointed and hurt, that he didn't listen to Jarvis' s comforting words as he rushed outside in a desperate need to get away. Pretty quickly he ended up sitting on a fallen tree, surrounded by snow, tears running down his face, completely oblivious to everything around him. 

“Tony...” was carried by the breeze and before he had time to react Loki appeared in front of him.

“What's wrong Tony ? Did something happen?” 

“It's all my fault, I'm bad at everything I do, I try my best and it's not enough.”

Loki's lips turned into a frown as his eyes reflected Tony's pain.

Caught up in the moment, without a second thought both of them rushed forward to hug each other. 

It was their first hug and after a few moments it was clear that it would be their last when Tony suddenly pulled back. 

Everywhere Loki's skin touched him, it hurt, he rubbed at his cheek and hands, but couldn't warm those spots up. It felt as if someone burned him except there wasn't any redness, light blue spots appeared instead. When Loki's gaze fell on Tony his eyes widened in shock and with a quick, 

'I'm so sorry...didn't think...I'm sorry.“ he ran away. 

Tony was so shocked that he stood shivering for a few seconds before he realized that his friend wasn't coming back and with a sad heart he started walking back to his home.

According to Jarvis the spots were beginnings of frostbite and despite him looking worried, he wasn't angry or disappointed at Tony.

”It's going to be alright young sir. We'll fix you right away. There's no need to cry...are you in pain ?“ 

”No.“ he wasn't crying because he was in pain, he was crying because he lost his best friend.

That night he went to bed, staring at the empty window, wishing he was looking at one of Loki's beautiful frost drawings, feeling completely alone.

Having spent a lot of time thinking Tony realized that he wasn't afraid of Loki and that he still wanted to be his friend, so he kept trying to reach him. He started once again with leaving cookies and other delicious treats, wrote messages on the glass and waited for a sign. All the while he worked on making a small mechanism, a toy horse that would gallop by the force of the wind. It was an apology gift for Loki who liked horses and he planned to give it to him as soon as possible once his friend realized that Tony wasn't scared of him. 

It took longer than he thought, about two weeks before Loki's red eyes peeked through the window as his presence got announced by the frost snowflakes that appeared on the glass.

"Loki!" he couldn't hold back the joyful cry when he finally saw his friend. 

To his delight, Loki didn't run away, he offered a shy smile and he agreed to play with Tony. When Tony gave him the gift, he was confused, since giving gifts wasn't something winter fairies did, but once he saw how it worked he was charmed.

"I know I can't give you a hug or shake your hand, but I promise that I'll find a way to be able to do that without hurting you." it was a serious promise, Tony could tell, like the ones his mother made or the ones his father never broke. 

"I promise to be your friend for ever and ever." the promise slipped through his lips before he could think about it, but it didn't worry him because he knew he would do everything to keep it. 

Tony was walking alone, thoughts far away lost in some new discovery when something blue flashed in front of him. Loki was grinning which only meant that he had discovered something important, his coat's sleeves were pulled up to his elbows and Tony was looking at his white arms...

_ White _

”Loki, your arms are white, kinda like mine but whiter.“

”Touch my hand, come on.“ the enthusiasm in his voice chasing any doubt from Tony's mind.

So he slowly took off one of his gloves and pressed his palm on Loki's wrist. Nothing happened, his skin was slightly cooler, but it felt as if he was touching another human.

”I did it! I mean I can only do my arms and it doesn't last longer than an hour, but it's possible for me to do that will the rest, and to do it at will without it disappearing, then I'll look the same as you...well not exactly, but I'll look like one of you...“

”And the warm won't bother you as much...and you will be able to come inside! Jarvis would love to meet you and everyone else will think you're just a normal kid, so no one will bother you. Loki, we could go everywhere! I'll show you lots of things and you'll try lots of things. We're going to have so much fun!“ his mind was already thinking about new adventures, his happiness mirrored on Loki's face.

”It will take a lot of time and winter is nearly at its end.“ but that didn't discourage him.

”Doesn't matter, Jarvis says to always take your time and be careful, so don't worry we have lots of winters to spend together. Until you improve your ice powers we can play outside and I have so many ideas. Come on, Jarvis promised to bake something sweet today, you'll love it.“ and without a second thought he grabbed one of Loki's hands and pulled him along.

Little did they know that things almost never go according to plan and their dreams were about to get shattered. 

Spring, summer and autumn came and went and before he knew it, winter had arrived. By now this was the third winter since Tony met Loki and it was his favorite season of the year solely because he could see his best friend.

New winter meant new challenges for both of them, especially for Loki who was working hard on his powers to complete his transformation. Tony encouraged him as much as he could, but most of the time he was happy to be able to see his best friend.

”You know what Loki...you don't need to change at all.“

”What? This isn't a change Tony, it's an ability I didn't realize I had, something that separates me from the rest...and I know I can do that...I just need time.“

”Ohhh...I just don't want for the other fairies to make fun of you.“ he felt silly for saying it out loud.

”Is someone making fun of you Tony?“

”No.“ but the longer Loki looked at him the more he wanted to share his thoughts.

”The kids at school...they think you're not real, that you're my imaginary friend...they say I'm weird..“ he whispered the last part. 

A moment of silence before Loki started talking, his voice serious, the anger easy to read in his eyes.

”They are wrong. You're the most generous, kind and the smartest human I have ever met and before you say something, I have met more than one human and I have observed more than I can count. Tony you're my best friend, no one from my kind shines as brightly as you, you understand me better than my family. I'm proud to be your friend and if anyone says something bad to you...I'll make them fall on their butts whenever they step on snow and then I'll freeze their noses until they fall off.“

The last part was what made Tony burst into laughter, he laughed so much that tears started forming at the corners of his eyes.

”I don't think that would be necessary, but it would be so cool. Don't worry we'll find another way to prank them. Thanks Loki for being the best friend ever.“ then he hugged him, careful not to touch Loki's blue skin. 

Somehow everything felt less scary when they had each other.

  
  


”You just tell me how to catch those idiots and I'll...I'll set a fire and melt their icy wings...I'll invent something that would make them hang upside down...uncle Nick will help me, he's smart like that.“ he knew he was ranting, but he couldn't simply get over the things Loki told him, the fairies could be as mean as the humans and Tony wanted nothing more than to send Jarvis with his wooden spoon and polite scolding to teach them a few lessons in manners. 

His words were enough to wipe the sad look on Loki's face and to make him crack a smile before he closed his eyes and used his fairy magic to change into his human look. Tony stared in fascination as his friend managed to turn part of his skin white, mostly his arms and patches of his face started brightening. It was the only way he could touch Tony without hurting him. When he opened his eyes, Tony was waiting for a hug with open arms and for the first time Loki was the one who rushed forward.

At that moment their friendship was all that mattered and it was enough to give them the courage to keep going. 

  
  
  


They continued hanging around, playing in the snow and teaching each other various things which was more amusing than any game they could come up with, it was as if they had all the time in the world for themselves. 

Which was why when everything came to an end it hurt so much, especially since it was unexpected. 

Two weeks before the winter ended Tony's father announced that they were going to move out, for a second Tony thought that they would simply move to another place until the next winter, but when his mother sat down next to him and explained everything he realized that they weren't coming back.

He was never going to see his best friend again.

With that thought in mind he rushed out of the house, not even bothering to put on his coat as he ran towards the old tree where Loki and he played most of the time.

As if summoned by his thoughts Loki appeared in a whirl of snowflakes and his eyes widened in worry the moment he took in Tony's expression.

”Tony..“ he reached out to touch his shoulder to get his attention, only to stare at the tears running down Tony's face.

”What happened? Did someone do something to you? Talk to me..“

”We're moving out Loki, dad said we're going to move to a bigger town once the winter is over. We won't be coming back...“ he managed to say before he allowed himself to be pulled into a hug.

”It's alright, it's going to be alright. We still have time until you leave...I'm always going to be your friend and I'll never forget you. I promise.“ somehow his words had an effect on Tony, they calmed him down to the point where he could step back and offer a tiny smile.

”I promise to come back to visit you as soon as I'm able.“ 

The following two weeks were bittersweet, but they used as much time as they could and when the time came for them to say goodbye they had made gifts to exchange as a way not to forget each other. 

Loki gave him a necklace with a red crystal. He claimed it was for protection, that it would keep Tony safe even during the strongest snowstorm. Tony on the other hand made him a music box, an impressive feat for a nine year old but Tony was quite intelligent besides he had Jarvis', uncle Nick's and even his father's help to create the mechanism. 

He was surprised that his father was willing to help him make something for the friend he had never seen, but his answer was that he wasn't blind and he rarely showed it but he cared for his son's happiness. 

Loki was overjoyed, he said that he would never keep it out of sight, he'd keep it in a beautiful ice box, so no one could touch it.

They said their goodbyes after a long hug and as Tony was walking away, Loki's gift hanging from his neck, he heard it in the wind,

”We'll meet again. I promise.“ and he locked it inside of his heart to give him hope whenever he felt lonely.

That was more than ten years ago, Tony mused as he stared at the window next to his seat with a longing for his childhood years. He was trying to study in the old library, but couldn't keep his attention on the book for longer than fifteen minutes. It was snowing outside, but there were no frost patterns on any of the windows in the library or on any of the windows of the old university. He knew that because he checked, he did that every winter no matter where he was, he signed up to study at a university located in one of the countries far up in the north of Europe, just because he missed the snow. Yet he never saw any signs of frost patterns, they simply didn't form on any of the windows, scientifically he knew the answer still there was no reason for them to cease to exist. Unless...unless they were the artworks of the winter fairies.

There were no fairies here, he reminded himself as he closed the book in front of him, suddenly overcome with restlessness he got up and not minding where he walked, he crashed onto someone.

More than a few books including his own fell on the ground and he quickly lowered himself to gather them while at the same time he was apologising to the other person,

”I'm sorry, my mind was elsewhere.“ when he raised himself to return the books to their owner his gaze was caught by a pair of emerald eyes and an amused smile.

"It's alright, my mind was elsewhere too. Thank you for your help." his voice was unusually melodic.

"ahh, it's no problem." and he stepped back to let the other guy pass, thrown out of balance like never before.

"Have a nice evening." said the stranger as he threw one last look at Tony before he walked away. 

Tony's gaze followed him until he was out of sight, still not being able to shake himself of the weird spell he had fallen under. He shook his head and slowly went to return the book, his mind whirling with too many questions.

Unknown to him, but the moment he was about to crash into the stranger, frost flowers blossomed on the window's glass. 


End file.
